Mountain West Conference Standings: Aztecs Keep Firm Hold On Top Spot, Boise State Falls

San Diego State continues to show why they are the top team in the conference, throttling opponents with their suffocating defense and improving offense.

Yet, after another two-win week for the Aztecs, the conference is still up for grabs with some big-time showdowns yet to be played.

The traffic jam of teams in the thick of the conference is beginning to get reshuffled and when the smoke clears, there's a chance that a new sleeper team in Fresno State could be emerging. However, it's still New Mexico and Boise State taking the top spots behind San Diego State, although the pecking order of these two conference stalwarts may have changed a bit.

TEAM	CONF.	GB	OVERALL	STREAK
San Diego State	9-0	-	16-6	9W
New Mexico	6-2	2.5	13-8	3W
Boise State	6-3	3.0	15-7	2L
Fresno State	5-3	3.5	14-7	2W
Nevada	5-4	4.0	13-8	1W
Colorado State	4-4	4.5	12-9	1L
UNLV	4-5	5.0	13-9	1L
Wyoming	4-6	5.5	11-12	1W
Utah State	3-6	6.0	11-9	3L
San Jose State	2-8	7.5	7-15	1W
Air Force	1-8	8.0	10-12	8L

WEEKLY SCOREBOARD

Tuesday (1/26)

Fresno State                 71      Wyoming             60

San Diego State            57      Nevada                 54

Wednesday (1/27)

Colorado State               74      San Jose State     66

New Mexico                           84      Air Force              55

UNLV                            87      Boise State          77

Saturday (1/30)

San Jose State              75      Air Force              54

New Mexico                           88      Boise State          83

Wyoming                      83      Colorado State      76

San Diego State            67      UNLV                   52

Nevada                          89      Utah State            84

Biggest Winner: New Mexico

After starting Mountain West Conference play with four straight wins, Craig Neal's squad came into the week having lost two of their last three. For the Lobos, this was a potential make-or-break point in their season. Even if New Mexico split the week, the Lobos likely would've pushed themselves to the outside looking in with three conference losses before the end of January.

After this week, there's a feeling that the Lobos may be turning the corner from conference dark horse to legitimate contenders. New Mexico dismantled Air Force to start the week with an offensive barrage that looked to jumpstart the Lobos' confidence for a road trip to Boise.

Against the Broncos, sophomore guard Elijah Brown asserted his offensive abilities, contributing 30 points in New Mexico's five point win over the Broncos. Averaging a prolific 86 points per game through the week, New Mexico showed strides of a team that might have the moxie to make some noise in the conference. However, they say to be the best, you've got to beat the best and the Lobos will get that chance when they travel to San Diego State on Saturday.

Biggest Loser: Boise State

Last week, it was Boise State that proved themselves as the number one contender to knock off the Aztecs from the top spot in the conference. Well, what a difference a week makes in the Mountain West. The Broncos didn't exactly have the easiest slate with a trip to Vegas against an excitable UNLV squad and a showdown with the Lobos but after coming up short in both games, Leon Rice and company are stuck looking for answers.

Keeping the eye test in mind, the Broncos still look to be one of the more formidable outfits coming out of the conference but tickets to the NCAA Tournament seem to be more focused around how teams look on paper these days. Boise State's goal is to be playing into March for all the marbles but now, the room for error for this team is beginning to disappear. With a more manageable group of games upcoming, the Broncos need to assert themselves as one of the premier teams in the Mountain West.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE

Tuesday (2/2)                                 TIME (ET)                     COVERAGE

New Mexico v. UNLV                        8:00 PM                        CBSSN

Air Force v. Wyoming                       9:00 PM                        ROOT

Boise State v. Utah State                 9:00 PM                        ESPN3

San Diego State v. Colorado State     11:00 PM                      ESPN2

Wednesday (2/3)

San Jose State v. Fresno State                  10:00 PM                      MWN

Saturday (2/6)

Air Force v. Boise State                    2:00 PM                        ROOT

San Diego State v. New Mexico        4:00 PM                        CBSSN

Colorado State v. Nevada                  4:00 PM                        MWN

Wyoming v. Utah State                     6:00 PM                        ROOT

Fresno State v. UNLV                       7:00 PM                        ESPN3

Another week of Mountain West action packed with a loaded schedule of big-time clashes, the most intriguing match-up of the week could come on Saturday night when a newly crowned second place New Mexico squad travels to test their true colors at San Diego State. However, that real meaning of that game could change if the Lobos can't fight their way past UNLV on Tuesday night. The Rebels have are coming off a tough one against the Aztecs and now having dropped two of their last three, will likely be ready to trend back upwards in the standings once again.

UNLV is not the only team with potential for a big week as Wyoming has a chance to right their own sinking ship, taking on two of the bottom three teams in the conference in Air Force and Utah State. Keep an eye on Colorado State this upcoming week as well, as the Rams travel to "The Show" and then get a pesky Nevada team in Fort Collins.

With a slate of games where a strong amount of movement in the standings is expected, there's nothing better to do than just sit back, relax and enjoy another week of Mountain West Conference basketball.